The Dark Side of Remote Work: Protecting Your Health While Working from Home

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Working from home has become increasingly popular in recent years, with many employees now opting for remote work due to its flexibility and comfort. However, it can also have a significant impact on one's physical and mental health, which can go unnoticed and eventually lead to burnout. In this article, we will explore the negative effects of working from home and what you can do to mitigate them.

First and foremost, working from home can lead to a sedentary lifestyle, which is harmful to physical health. With no commute to work, many people find themselves sitting in front of a computer screen for long periods of time, leading to poor posture, eye strain, and neck and back pain. Moreover, being cooped up in a small space can lead to a lack of physical activity, which can have long-term health consequences such as weight gain, heart disease, and depression.

Working from home can also have a negative impact on mental health. The blurring of boundaries between work and personal life can lead to feelings of isolation, loneliness, and burnout. This can be particularly challenging for people who live alone, as they may not have the same opportunities for social interaction and support as they would in an office environment. Additionally, the lack of structure and routine can lead to increased stress and anxiety, as people struggle to balance work and home life.

Another factor to consider is the impact that working from home can have on one's work-life balance. The lines between work and home life can become blurred, making it difficult to switch off from work and relax. This can result in increased stress and anxiety, as well as decreased job satisfaction and motivation. Moreover, the lack of structure and routine can lead to an increase in working hours, as people struggle to get their work done within the constraints of a traditional 9-5 schedule.

So what can you do to mitigate these negative effects of working from home? 

Here are a few tips:

Set up a dedicated work area: Having a specific place for work can help you maintain a healthy work-life balance, as it gives you a clear distinction between work and home life. This can be a separate room or a designated area within a larger room.

Take regular breaks: Regular breaks are essential for preventing burnout, so take a break every hour or so to stretch, walk around, and refocus your mind.

Maintain a healthy diet: Eating a balanced diet and staying hydrated can help you maintain your physical and mental health. Avoid eating junk food and excessive caffeine, and try to eat nutritious meals and snacks throughout the day.

Exercise regularly: Regular exercise is essential for maintaining physical and mental health, so make sure to get at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day. This can be anything from going for a walk, to doing yoga, to hitting the gym.

Connect with others: Staying connected with friends and family is crucial for maintaining mental health, so make an effort to connect with others regularly, whether it be through phone calls, video calls, or social events.

To summarise, working from home can have negative impacts on physical and mental health, but by taking the steps outlined above, you can mitigate these effects and maintain a healthy work-life balance. It is important to be mindful of the impact that working from home can have, and to take action to ensure that you are taking care of both your physical and mental health.

One of the best things you can do is to create a morning routine that focuses on physical fitness and mental well-being. Something as simple as 20 minutes with a combination of exercise, stretching, breathing and meditation can set you up for a productive day and also keep you on track for optimised health.

If you would like to begin a home mind and body health routine, then join our free course today and see the difference in just weeks

https://rdar.li/freecourse

10 ways to move forward in life

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Our main page now has a blog so most of the content will be on there and linked here.

Please click on the image below for 10 tips on moving forward in life

The overhead kettlebell swing - our verdict

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For many professional kettlebell coaches and athletes the overhead kettlebell swing is a blasphemy that should not exist - it is that simple. However, usually you just end up with 2 camps throwing stones at each other.

Here we detail why it exists, why it is ultimately flawed and how you can get around it even if you need to perform this movement to compete.

Click the image for the full article

Enjoy :)

CrossFit Raeda - the best gym in Harlow

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Last weekend I finally got round to seeing the new venue in Harlow that is Crossfit Raeda

 Myself and owner Lee Ottey cleaning the place up

This is not your average gym and is run by some of the best coaches in the UK. What you have is a first class facility for weightlifting, strength and conditioning, athletic preparation and testing as well as regular classes to stay in shape. Annie and Lee have a wealth of experience as both competitive athletes and coaches having been an integral part of the GB handball team for the London 2012 Olympics. You will not find a venue run by someone who has dabbled in training, opened a gym and put shiny certificates all over the wall. These coaches are the real deal and have athletic testing sessions with light gates and a force mat to check progress and performance levels.

I had a lifting session there recently in prep for a competition and have to say that it was a very good session in a venue that I would like to train in as regularly as time and travel distance will allow being 60 miles away.

They have a set of 8 level platforms, Eleiko bars and competition plates hidden away and a fantastic wall-mount rig construction with an overhang ladder. You have the concept 2 rowers, a lot of good quality cast iron and competition steel kettlebells as well as the usual circuit stuff such as boxes, med balls and dumbbells. It is a great place to train, with first class coaches that will do more than just run you into the ground 3 times a week. They understand performance and will make sure you show steady progress, as injury free as possible, and with intelligently planned progressions based on your specific goals.

Aside from the Crossift classes the venue is also a recognised weightlifting club affiliated with British Weightlifting. Sessions are run for you to learn and improve these skills on a regular basis which will greatly improve your confidence when workouts contain these technical movements. The exercises are broken down into manageable chunks that allow you to fully understand what is happening at each aspect of the global movement so you begin to understand mechanics, power production, centre of mass and become a proficient lifter.

If you are within a 30 minute drive of this venue than I would simply make it your new training facility and finally get some professional coaching to achieve your goals. Far too many people zombie along in the local leisure centre looking and feeling no different to when they joined 3 years ago. Here you will be very surprised at what can be achieved when your time and efforts are specifically focussed on achieving your goals.

I also had one of my best ever training session there.

Go check them out!

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Tel: +44 203 243 1020

Mob: 07738 210101 or 07958 359681

Worlds Best Supplement Guide

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Now and then something in the fitness industry comes along that really has an impact on many levels and the Examine.com website is one of them.

The team have spent the last few years researching tens of thousands of scientific articles on supplements and compiled it into a completely objective review of over 300 supplement products. The research is all human study based and graded on the robustness of the clinical trial that highlighted the main effects of each product tested.

This laborious task has resulted in the go-to website for all information on supplements and has received praise from around the world. The website is completely independent as has no affiliation, or supplement products to recommend or sell. By remaining impartial they ensure they are professional on all levels.

As a bonus for anyone in the fitness industry and particularly nutrition, body transformation, stage prep and athletic performance the entire site is available as an interactive PDF - currently over 800 pages and with the bonus feature of allowing you to focus on the supplements recommended for over 180 health goals. It is basically a complete offline version of the database with the added benefit of being completely linked internally and with an easy search feature for goals.

Many people spends £100s of pounds on website and forum membership for information like this. Even worse, some have to trawl through endless journals and clinical text with no real idea of the robustness of the study design and therefore scientific validity of the outcome. These guys have done it all for you.

Perhaps the best feature is that for a one-off investment of your average core text you get FREE lifetime updates daily. As soon as any new research is added the PDF is automatically regenerated each morning with the most up to date version.

Supplement info for life at your fingertips.

If you are not sure how good this information is then click on these guys -

 Click the book below to be taken directly to the product page for further information.

Durham Nutrition Workshop and some time off

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The first round of the UK and Ireland nutrition tour has nearly come to a close with all of the major venues and requests completed.

It has been a very interesting journey of meeting great people, lovely cities, lots of travel miles and doing things rather than thinking about them.

The Durham event was a request and at the lovely Durham County Cricket Club. As you can see from the image, quite a location -

It was also great to have Neil from Genetic Supplements attend and provide samples and shakers for the delegates!

The day before the event we decided to head out to Blackpool as it was my birthday and I needed a hit of roller-coasters and near death experiences.

It is always reassuring to know that the zombie outbreak team has your back - especially in Blackpool

Between rides Alex decided to go for the plank pose and engage abs.

At 38 I decided on a lay down and a cup of ovaltine.....

The event went very well and it was good to meet up with Phil Earley - the only guy you need to go to for kettlebell instruction in Newcastle - his website can be found here - http://www.newcastlekettlebellliftingclub.com/

Neil was kind enough to let us take what remained of the samples so that we could try them for ourselves and provide feedback.

I have a championship event coming up in a few months and will certainly give them a good trial based on already seeing results from the sustain and recovery in just a few sessions based on my work capacity, and recovery. I also feel extremely focussed during longer sessions and actually switch off mentally - just getting on with the job.

The direct links to each product can be accessed by clicking on the images. These supplements are scientifically researched, highly engineered and top of the supplement food chain. We certainly recommend them based on a trial run.

Future nutrition workshops are below - click the fruit and veg!

Ireland leg of the nutrition tour with Alex Ferentinos

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The Ireland leg of the nutrition tour is sadly over and it did feel like one of those weekends where you are chasing to make up time and fit things in. Fire alarms at 3am, lost shoes, hire cars that could only hit 60mph if they went off a cliff and some great people. Anyway - that is how we roll.....



On the Friday evening we headed out to meet the S&C for Ulster Rugby - Kevin Geary - @kevGeary

Fantastic facility as you can see from the image and absolutely no fluff to be seen right down to the post workout shelf next to you - everything planned to the latter. A solid set up for athletic performance that instantly reassures you that in some sports they know how important sports science and strength training are. It may well be contagious in the future for sports using balls with different shapes!

Great conversation with a very knowledgeable coach that has made a huge impact on the team and shows you what hard work and knowledge can do if you are hungry.

The hotel was great (grand for people reading this who were at the events) and for visitors to Belfast I can highly recommend the Hilton Templepatrick. Very well laid out, lots do do, great food and Guinness! Although we are both no drinkers, this stuff always goes down a treat.



The talk went very well and Alex had shoes for this one - more on that later.






Great group and for me as host it is really good to see the material flow from event to event as the flexibility in the material delivery increases. While Alex is an expert in the field of nutrition he now has the opportunity to "play" the material based on the group, questions and topics that may need more attention to detail than others. These are essential skills and he is rolling.

After the Belfast talk we had an invite from Luke Haslett - @lukehaslett physique specialist and Phil Graham @clearCutphilG Northern Ireland's top pro bodybuilder to train at Rockpit Fitness Gym in Lisburn - @rockpitFitness. As you can see I managed to redeem myself with some forearm thanks to the grip training and we had to stand in the corner of the gym to fit all of Phil in the picture - he is a BEAST - the nice type.

The set up in Rockpit Fitness gym is no fluff as well. The equipment set up is solid and everything is catered for here in a big way as you can see from the images below. Click on any of the images to be taken to their homepage and if you are close to Lisburn, Northern Ireland, and looking to escape the circus known as modern day leisure centres and get some real training on then I highly recommend this place. 

The knowledge of the coaches is also of a very high degree based on the calibre of clients and the coaching, training and preparation work they do with their athletes. You do not just get a gym with shiny heavy kit and banging music and then wonder what to do - you get professional assistance in achieving your goals and making solid progress!

Alex liked Rockpit Fitness gym so much that he decided to offer his shoes as homage and went for the barefoot approach in Dublin - maybe some biomechanics paper he was reading on the feet. Containing almost 25% on the joints in your body I can see how some free movement would be beneficial and he obviously decided this was the way forward! Big thanks to Conor Murphy for helping organise Dublin - @nurishfood

A great weekend and a fantastic experience for both of us. We look forward to coming back in the near future and to the next venues on the tour.


Tickets and venues for the rest of the tour can be accessed by clicking on Dorothy below and as there are regular requests new events are added when confirmed.

Thank You Ireland!